Detachable drapery carrier

ABSTRACT

A two part detachable drapery carrier and heading stiffener including a male member and a female member. The female member is made integrally with a drapery-heading stiffener and is formed to provide a cavity between movable latch elements having catches which snap over and lock the lower end of the male member when the latter is properly located within the cavity. The upper end of the male member is formed to be easily slidable in a track system, while the lower end of the male member is formed to cam open the latch elements of the female member. In addition the lower end of the male member has a double inclined surface over which the catches of the latch elements fit to couple the male member with the female member. The trunk of the male member is formed to enable the device to be rocked or moved in the plane of the drapery-heading stiffener without unlatching the male member from the female member, while at the same time it is formed to permit unlatching of the male member from the female member in response to relative movement therebetween in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to the plane of the drapery-heading stiffener.

United States Patent [72] lnventor Ellis 1. Toder 9225 Grace Lane,Philadelphia, Pa. 19115 [21 Appl. N 0. 872,085 [22] Filed Oct. 29, 1969[45] Patented Dec. 7, 1971 [54] DETACHABLE DRAPERY CARRIER 4 Claims, 14Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl l6/87.2, 16/93 D, 24/230 SL [51] Int. Cl A47h 13/00 [50]Field of Search 16/87.2,

87.4, 87.6, 87.8. 93, 94, 95, 96; 160/344, 345; 24/201 S,230 SL, 217

Primary Examiner- Bobby R. Gay Assistant Examiner- Peter A.Aschenbrenner Attorney Edelson & Udell ABSTRACT: A two part detachabledrapery carrier and heading stiffener including a male member and afemale member. The female member is made integrally with adrapery-heading stiffener and is formed to provide a cavity betweenmovable latch elements having catches which snap over and lock the lowerend of the male member when the latter is properly located within thecavity. The upper end of the male member is formed to be easily slidablein a track system, while the lower end of the male member is formed tocam open the latch elements of the female member. In addition the lowerend of the male member has a double inclined surface over which thecatches of the latch elements fit to couple the male member with thefemale member. The trunk of the male member is formed to enable thedevice to be rocked or moved in the plane of the drapery-headingstiffener without unlatching the male member from the female member,while at the same time it is formed to permit unlatching of the malemember from the female member in response to relative movementtherebetween in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to theplane of the drapery-heading stiffener.

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PATENTEU DEC 7197i SHEET 3 OF 3 Wi l [IV TO I ELLIS I WWW DETACHABLEDRAPERY CARRIER BACKGROUND In the prior art movable draperies have beenmounted on walls, over windows or doors, etc. by employing many devices,all of which include a plurality of slidable members to which thedrapery is fastened, and an elongated member with which the slidablemembers are slidably engaged. Typically, the elongated member comprisesa track having a slot therein and a plurality of slidable means each ofwhich has a flangelike section and a depending trunk section. The flangeprovides the means which slides along the upper surface of the sides ofthe slot and the trunk protrudes through the slot to provide a means towhichthe drapery may be connected.

The formation of the trunk is varied with the various prior art devices.The commonest device has been one wherein the depending truck has anaperture and wherein the drapery is held by an 8" shaped wire memberwith a point at one end and a hook at the other end. The hook isdisposed through the aperture in the trunk of the slidable carrierthereby mounting a portion of the drape on each slidable carrier. Inanother form, and to which the present invention is primarily directed,the drapery is sewed or secured to a drapery stiffener. Mounted on thedrapery stiffener or formed integrally with the drapery stiffener is asplit head having a plurality of resilient fingers. In this lastdescribed form the trunk of the slidable carrier has a socket formedtherein with a somewhat narrowed neck being formed as part of thesocket. When the draperyheading stiffener is coupled to the slidablecarrier, the resilient fingers are radially compressed and forced, orinserted, into the socket wherein they spread because of their resilientnature to thereby lock thedrapery-heading stiffener with the carrier.Such a device is described in my US. Pat. No. 3,460,603.

While this last described arrangement, i.e., a carrier with a sockettherein and a drapery-heading stiffener with a split head thereon, hasbeen generally satisfactory, nevertheless it has been determined thatthe user prefers to have a detachable carrier which does not require theforce necessary to compress the resilient fingers to effect both theinsertion and the removal of the drapery-heading stiffener from thecarrier. In addition it has been found that the above-describeddetachable carrier permits the drapery-heading stiffener to bedisengaged from the socket if the drapery is subjected to a sharpdownward pull.

Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide adetachable-mounting device for a drapery which enables the user toreadily mount a drapery on or remove a drapery from, a track system andwhich at the same time provides a mounting arrangement which is capableof being pulled downward or rocked or moved in the plane of the draperywithout any undesired disengagement of the drapery from the tracksystem.

SUMMARY The present invention comprises male and female members in whichthe male member has an elongated trunk portion at the upper section ofwhich there is formed a flange, which flange is beveled to provide aslidability in an associated drapery track. The lower portion of themale member has an aperture therein which if formed in an archlikeconfiguration. At the base of the arch is a double inclined surfacewhich fonns the base of an inverted triangle, or the bottom of anarrowhead structure in which the apex of the arrowhead is located veryclose to the bottom of the trunk of the male member. The upper part ofthe arch is beveled outwardly upward toward the upper portion of thetrunk and as will become more meaningful hereinafter, the removal of thesection of the trunk in order to effect the beveled portion enables thecarrier to be rotated in the plane of the drapery without having anycamming effect on the female member of the device which would cause themale member to be disengaged from the female member. In addition, thelower extremity of the trunk of the male member is beveled outwardlyfrom the edge of the arrowhead in order to provide a structure whichwill abut the female member and effect a disengaging camming action whenthe male and female elements are relatively moved in a planesubstantially perpendicular to the plane of the draperyheadingstiffener.

In a preferred embodiment the female member of the present devicecomprises two cavity forming latches which are made of resilientmaterial and which when separated by the arrowhead of the male membercan be spread apart a sufficient distance to allow the arrowhead to beinserted into the cavity formed within the latches. When the arrowheadis penetratingly inserted so that the base of the arrowhead has reachedthe catch surfaces of the latches, the latches are returned because oftheir resiliency and the catches overlie the base of the arrowhead,thereby locking the arrowhead into the cavity of the female member.Because of the previously mentioned beveled portion ofthe arch the malemember may be rocked or rotated a substantial distance in the plane ofthe heading stiffener without camming apart the latches of the femalemember. On the other hand as will become apparent hereinafter when thereis necessity to disengage the male member from the female member, themale member need only be rocked in a plane perpendicular to thedrapery-heading stiffener and the portion of the trunk which is beveledoutward from the edges of the arrowhead cams against the side surfacesof the female member latches thereby causing the catches to spread apartso that the male member may be disengaged.

The objects and features of the present invention will be betterunderstood from the following description and in accordance with thedrawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation view;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary exploded perspective view of the parts on anenlarged scale;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view along line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view along line 66 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a jump sectional view along line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view which is similar to the view shown in FIG. 7, butwherein the parts are almost coupled;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to the view shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 wherein themale part has been fully inserted and latched;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view along line l0-- 10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 shows the male element after it has been rotated a substantiallylong distance in a clockwise direction and yet wherein the male part isstill latched to the female section;

FIG. 12 is a view showing the first step of the unlocking procedure;

FIG. 13 is a jump sectional view along line l3-l3 of FIG. 12; and

FIG. 14 is an elevational view along line 14-14 of FIG. 12.

In the several figures, like elements are denoted by like referencecharacters.

Consider first FIG. 1 which shown the overall assembly of the maleelement 11 with the female element 13. It will be noted that while thefemale element 13 is illustrated as being made integral with thedrapery-heading stiffener 15, it should be understood that the femaleelement 13 need not be so integral but may be suitably mounted orsecured to the draperyheading stiffener IS. The advantages of thedrapery element 15 as shown in FIG. I are described in my US. Pat. No.3,460,603. The drapery can be secured to the upper and lower strips 12and I4 by stitching or other methods.

In the preferred embodiment, the female member 13 includes two latches16 although one latch would suffice with the cavity formed with the wallof the stiffener. Each of the latches 16 is provided at its upper innerregion with a downwardly inclined catch 17. It will be noted in FIG. I(and it will be more apparent in the later figures) that the uppersurfaces I8 of the latches 16 are formed to lie minimally slightly belowthe surfaces 19 of the stiffener-l5. As will become apparent hereinafterwhen the latches 16 and catches 17 are separated for the purpose ofenabling the male member 11 to be inserted in between and latchedthereby, the latches 16 and catches 17 are rotated respectivelylaterally away from each other as seen in FIG. 8, and their outer edgestherefore drop slightly below the adjacent surfaces of the headingstiffener in order to enable the latches to move against thecantilevered shelf portions 32 of the stiffener. The shelf portions 32are thus moved slightly upward as these latches are rotated and exert arestoring bias on the latches.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary exploded perspective of the present device andin particular shows many of the features necessary to accomplish thecoupling action of the male member with the female member. As shown inFIG. 4 the male member has a trunk portion 22, the top section of whichis formed with a flange 23 having a beveled section 24 to makethe malemember easily slidable in the track of the system which holds or mountsthe draperies. In addition to the flange 23 there is fonned on the upperportion of the male element a second flange or shelf 25 which ridesunder the bottom portion of the slot in the associated track in orderthat spacer elements (not shown) which fit around the center section 26of the trunk will be kept from moving up and locking into the track slotand thereby impeding the movement of the train of carriers. The use ofsuch spacers has been described in my above-mentioned patent and neednot be further described here.

The lower portion of the trunk 22 has an aperture 27 formed therein inthe shape of an arch, the base of the arch is formed as a down-pointingarrowhead 28, with the base of the arch also forming the base of thearrowhead 28. The base of the arrowhead 28 is a substantially widesurface which serves as a base upon which the catches 17 of the latches16 seat to effect a looking or coupling of the male member with thefemale member.

As can be seen in FIGS. 4, 5, and 7 to 9, the right-hand portion of thearch 27 which extends outwardly upward is beveled to form a cutaway 29,while the same type of cutaway 29a, as seen in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, isformed on the left-hand side of the arch 27 so that the apex of the archis defined by the arcuate lower edge of the two-cutaway sections. Inaddition, in FIG. 4 the outer sections of the trunk 22 which lie alongthe edges of the downwardly converging side surfaces of the arrowhead 28are beveled from those arrowhead edges toward the outer sides of thetrunk, such as is shown in the areas 30, 31.

As will become move apparent hereinafter in connection with the showingof FIGS.'7 to 9, as the male member 11 is inserted into the femalemember13, the latches 16 and catches 17 will separate and will ride under theshelf portions 32 of the heading stiffener thereby camming thoseportions upward. The latches 16 and catches 17 will be sufficientlyseparated to allow the arrowhead 28 to be inserted into the cavity 34.By having the shelf sections 32 thus arranged the latch sections 16 andcatches 17 not only are restored by the resiliency of their ownstructure but also by the resiliency of the draperyheading stiffener.

FIG. shows an elevational view along the lines 5-5 of FIG. 4 from whichit is noted that the beveled section 29 is only beveled in the upperportion of the trunk and not toward the outside sections of the truck asare the areas 31 and 30. The desirability of this feature will becomeapparent when the description of the uncoupling procedure is set forth.

FIG. 7 is a view along the line 77 of FIG. 6. The male elemeat 11 issectionalized to show the arrowhead 28 in section as well as the cutawayportions 29 and 290, the latter not being viewable in FIG. 6. FIGS. 7, 8and 9, all of which are the same view but which show the male member indifferent stages of entry into the coupling position, should beconsidered together. It will be noted in FIG. 8 that as thearrowhead 28is pushed between the latching elements 16 and catches 17 these latchingelements are cammed outwardly against the shelf portions 32 therebycamming these latter portions up. Finally the latches are separatedsufficiently wide apart to allow the arrowhead to be completely insertedinto the cavity 34 as shown in FIG. 9. When the base 35 of the arrowhead28 has moved downward beneath the catches 17 so that the arrowhead 28 iscompletely inserted into the cavity 34, the latches 16 and catches 17return by the resiliency of their own material and by the further urgingof the shelf elements 32 so that the angularly downwardly inclinedundersurfaces 36 of the catches 17 overlie and seat upon thecomplementally angularly inclined upper surfaces 37 of the base 35 ofthe arrowhead 28, and thereby lock the arrowhead and thus the malemember into coupling position.

FIG. 10 shows a sectional view of the arrowhead in the insertedposition. The lead-in guide surface 39 as well as the vertical edge 40of the left catch 17 and the surface 41 of the cavity 34 are shown intheir respective positions so that the relationship of the sections asdepicted in FIG. 9 can be better understood. FIG. 1 1 shows the movementof the male member in a clockwise rotation as can happen during movementof the drapery such as in a housecleaning operation or when the draperyis hand pulled. Because of the cutaway portion 29, the male member 1 1may be rotated to the position shown in FIG. 1 l and yet not be cammedagainst either the latching element 17 or the drapery-heading stiffener15. It will be noted that in this position one side surface of thearrowhead 28 abuts the surface 41 of one of the latches 16 and surface40 of one catch 17, and any further rotation is very difficult. Also theclearance between the top of cutaway portion 29 and the top of theright-hand latch 16 can be seen. If the cutaway portion 29 were notprovided in the male member then the motion depicted in FIG. 11 wouldresult in the male member being cammed against the lead-in surface 38 ofone catch 17, or if it were rotated in the opposite direction againstthe lead-in surface 39 of the other catch 17, to cam the arrowheadsection 28 out of the latched position, thereby causing the drapery tofall off of the carrier 11. While it is observed that one of thearrowhead surfaces 37 has escaped from beneath its associated catch 17,the other surface 37 remains firmly caught by the remaining catch 17. Inthe preferred embodiment the vertical height of the arch isapproximately 1% times the height of the catches from the tip of surface36 to the surface 18.

FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 are views which illustrate the procedure ofdisengaging the male member from the female member. It will be noted inFIG. 12 that the male member is being rotated in a plane which issubstantially perpendicular to the plane of the drapery-headingstiffener. When such action is taken it will be noted that the beveledsurfaces 31 and 31a (not visible) are rotated against the outer surfaces42 of the latches at the point 43. However, as will be noted, the lowersection of the beveled areas 31 and 31a have entered into the cavity 34and are thus acting to separate the latches 16 while the upper end ofbevelled areas 30 and 30a (not shown) ride inward over the lead-in guidesurfaces 38 and 39 of the catches 17 to cam the catches open so that thearrowhead 28 can pass therethrough in a lateral direction rather than ina vertical direction. FIG. 13 also shows the surfaces in theirrespective positions for decoupling. When the latches 16 and 17 havebeen separated sufficiently to permit the arrowhead to pass therebetweenthe stiffener snaps outward and downward thereby decoupling the male andfemale members. FIG. 14 is a view along the lines 14-14 of FIG. 12 whichshows that the lower beveled section 31 is well into the cavity 34 whilethe upper portion of the beveled section is serving as the fulcrum orthe point of the rotating action to enable the bevel to separate thelatches and permit the arrowhead to be freed therefrom.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. A drapery mounting device for supporting draperies which can be movedalong a track system comprising in combination:

a. a drapery-heading stifi'ener including means adapted for securementto a drapery to be supported thereby, said stiffener having an upperedge and a lower edge with said upper edge being disposed toward thetrack system;

b. a female member carried by said drapery stiffener proximate to theupper edge thereof and including positionally self-restoring shiftablelatch means, said latch means having at least one upper cam surface anda lower catch spaced downward therefrom with said cam surface facingupward toward the track system, said latch means being cammed laterallyaway from its at rest position in response to a downwardly directedforce applied against said upper cam surface, said latch means includinga cavity within its structure laterally of and below said at least onecatch;

0. a male member having an upper section and a lower section, said uppersection including means engageable with the track system to provide easysliding movement therealong, said lower section including latch openingmeans effective to cam said upper cam surface of said female memberlatch means laterally outwardly in response to a downward movement ofsaid lower section thereagainst, whereby said lower section can enterinto said cavity and be locked therein by said catch; and

d. self-restoring cantilevered shelf means which protrude from saiddrapery stifiener means toward and in close proximity to said latchmeans, whereby when said latch means is cammed away from its at restposition it engages said shelf means and cams said shelf means away fromthe latters at rest position so that when the force which cams saidlatch means is no longer present said latch means is urged to its atrest position by the force of said self-restoring shelf means.

2. A drapery mounting device for supporting draperies which can be movedalong a track system comprising in combination:

a. a drapery-heading stiffener including means adapted for securement toa drapery to be supported thereby, said stiffener having an upper edgeand a lower edge with said upper edge being disposed toward the tracksystem;

b. a female member carried by said drapery stiffener proximate to theupper edge thereof and including positionally self-restoring shiftablelatch means, said latch means having at least one upper cam surface anda lower catch spaced downward therefrom with said cam surface facingupward toward the track system, said latch means being cammed laterallyaway from its at rest position in response to a downwardly directedforce applied against said upper cam surface, said latch means includinga cavity within its structure laterally of and below said at least onecatch;

a male member having an upper section and a lower section, said uppersection including means engageable with the track system to provide easysliding movement therealong, said lower section including latch openingmeans and cam means, said latch opening means being ef fective to camsaid upper cam surface of said female member latch means laterallyoutwardly in response to a downward movement of said lower sectionthereagainst whereby said lower section can enter into said cavity andbe locked therein by said catch, and said cam means being operative tocam said latch means apart in response to rotation of said lower sectionin a plane substantially perpendicular to the plane of saiddrapery-heading stiffcner.

3. A drapery mounting device according to claim 2 wherein said malemember lower section latch opening means comprises an arrowheadstructure whose tip points downward away from said male member uppersection, and wherein said cam means comprises bevelled surfacesextending divergingly from the side edges of said arrowhead structuretoward the outside of said male member.

4. A drapery mounting device for supporting draperies which can be movedalong a track system comprising in combination:

a. a drapery-heading stiffener including means adapted for securement toa drapery to be supported thereby said stiffener having an upper edgeand a ower edge with said upper edge being disposed toward the tracksystem;

b. a female member carried by said drapery stiffener proximate to theupper edge thereof and including positionally self-restoring shiftablelatch means, said latch means having at least one upper cam surface anda lower catch spaced downward therefrom with said cam surface facingupward toward the track system, said latch means being cammed laterallyaway from its at rest position in response to a downwardly directedforce applied against said upper cam surface, said latch means includinga cavity within its structure laterally of and below said at least onecatch;

c. a male member having an upper section and a lower section, said uppersection including means engageable with the track system to provide easysliding movement therealong, said lower section including latch openingmeans and an open arch and cam means, said latch opening meanscomprising an arrowhead structure whose base fonns the base of said archand whose tip points downward away from said male member upper sectionand being effective to cam said upper cam surface of said female memberlatch means laterally outwardly in response to a downward movement ofsaid lower section thereagainst whereby said lower section can enterinto said cavity and be locked therein by said catch, said open archhaving an upper surface which is bevelled upward from its center towardits outer edges and wherein the height of said bevelled arch issufficient that when said male member is rotated in the plane of saidstiffener means said arch does not engage said female member, and saidcam means comprising bevelled surfaces extending divergingly from theside edges of said arrowhead toward the outside of said male member.

1. A drapery mounting device for supporting draperies which can be movedalong a track system comprising in combination: a. a drapery-headingstiffener including means adapted for securement to a drapery to besupported thereby, said stiffener having an upper edge and a lower edgewith said upper edge being disposed toward the track system; b. a femalemember carried by said drapery stiffener proximate to the upper edgethereof and including positionally selfrestoring shiftable latch means,said latch means having at least one upper cam surface and a lower catchspaced downward therefrom with said cam surface facing upward toward thetrack system, said latch means being cammed laterally away from its atrest position in response to a downwardly directed force applied againstsaid upper cam surface, said latch means including a cavity within itsstructure laterally of and below said at least one catch; c. a malemember having an upper section and a lower section, said upper sectionincluding means engageable with the track system to provide easy slidingmovement therealong, said lower section including latch opening meanseffective to cam said upper cam surface of said female member latchmeans laterally outwardly in response to a downward movement of saidlower section thereagainst, whereby said lower section can enter intosaid cavity and be locked therein by said catch; and d. self-restoringcantilevered shelf means which protrude from said drapery stiffenermeans toward and in close proximity to said latch means, whereby whensaid latch means is cammed away from its at rest position it engagessaid shelf means and cams said shelf means away from the latter''s atrest position so that when the force which cams said latch means is nolonger present said latch means is urged to its at rest position by theforce of said self-restoring shelf means.
 2. A drapery mounting devicefor supporting draperIes which can be moved along a track systemcomprising in combination: a. a drapery-heading stiffener includingmeans adapted for securement to a drapery to be supported thereby, saidstiffener having an upper edge and a lower edge with said upper edgebeing disposed toward the track system; b. a female member carried bysaid drapery stiffener proximate to the upper edge thereof and includingpositionally self-restoring shiftable latch means, said latch meanshaving at least one upper cam surface and a lower catch spaced downwardtherefrom with said cam surface facing upward toward the track system,said latch means being cammed laterally away from its at rest positionin response to a downwardly directed force applied against said uppercam surface, said latch means including a cavity within its structurelaterally of and below said at least one catch; c. a male member havingan upper section and a lower section, said upper section including meansengageable with the track system to provide easy sliding movementtherealong, said lower section including latch opening means and cammeans, said latch opening means being effective to cam said upper camsurface of said female member latch means laterally outwardly inresponse to a downward movement of said lower section thereagainstwhereby said lower section can enter into said cavity and be lockedtherein by said catch, and said cam means being operative to cam saidlatch means apart in response to rotation of said lower section in aplane substantially perpendicular to the plane of said drapery-headingstiffener.
 3. A drapery mounting device according to claim 2 whereinsaid male member lower section latch opening means comprises anarrowhead structure whose tip points downward away from said male memberupper section, and wherein said cam means comprises bevelled surfacesextending divergingly from the side edges of said arrowhead structuretoward the outside of said male member.
 4. A drapery mounting device forsupporting draperies which can be moved along a track system comprisingin combination: a. a drapery-heading stiffener including means adaptedfor securement to a drapery to be supported thereby, said stiffenerhaving an upper edge and a lower edge with said upper edge beingdisposed toward the track system; b. a female member carried by saiddrapery stiffener proximate to the upper edge thereof and includingpositionally self-restoring shiftable latch means, said latch meanshaving at least one upper cam surface and a lower catch spaced downwardtherefrom with said cam surface facing upward toward the track system,said latch means being cammed laterally away from its at rest positionin response to a downwardly directed force applied against said uppercam surface, said latch means including a cavity within its structurelaterally of and below said at least one catch; c. a male member havingan upper section and a lower section, said upper section including meansengageable with the track system to provide easy sliding movementtherealong, said lower section including latch opening means and an openarch and cam means, said latch opening means comprising an arrowheadstructure whose base forms the base of said arch and whose tip pointsdownward away from said male member upper section and being effective tocam said upper cam surface of said female member latch means laterallyoutwardly in response to a downward movement of said lower sectionthereagainst whereby said lower section can enter into said cavity andbe locked therein by said catch, said open arch having an upper surfacewhich is bevelled upward from its center toward its outer edges andwherein the height of said bevelled arch is sufficient that when saidmale member is rotated in the plane of said stiffener means said archdoes not engage said female member, and said cam means comprisingbevelled surfaces extending divergingly from the side edges of saidarrowhead toward the outside of said male member.